Just as the Yankees are getting healthy in the bullpen with the return of Scott Effross, Wandy Peralta suffers an injury that’ll send him to the IL for Zack Britton.
Initially, many speculated whether Zack Britton’s activation would cause the Yankees to demote one of the bright young arms in the bullpen or top 100 prospect Oswald Peraza, but instead, it comes out that Wandy Peralta is the corresponding move per Joel Sherman.
Wandy had posted a 2.72 ERA with the Yankees this year but came off of a rough outing against Milwaukee that we can potentially attribute to injury, but how can Zack Britton fill in for Wandy?
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Successful Rehab Assignment:
Britton appeared in 8 games on his rehab assignment, with an ERA of 1.35 and 7 strikeouts to just 2 walks while keeping the ball on the ground a lot. His velocity seems down from his 2018-2020 days, but at 92-93 MPH, Britton should still be able to generate the soft contact on the ground we’ve seen in the past. His K-BB rates will always be underwhelming (10.3%), but his historic ability to keep batters hitting at a negative launch angle has helped him post a strong 3.12 ERA.
Seeing Britton continue to keep the ball on the ground is vital, as that’s what will determine whether he has success or not at the MLB level, even without the 95-96 MPH sinker he had in the past.
The Yankees Have to Follow The Zack Britton Rules:
Zack Britton is healthy, but there’s one asterisk to note with his usage; he cannot pitch on back-to-back days. This means that if Britton were to go tonight, he would not be available tomorrow. This isn’t an issue early in the ALDS as Games 1 and 2 have off days after, but Games 3, 4, and 5 are complicated. In the ALCS, this doesn’t get much better, as Games 3-7 are in consecutive, and Britton’s usage would be an issue there as well. That’s looking at the big picture, but it could create serious issues for Britton’s ability to make the playoff roster.
Steamer projects him at an ERA of 3.61, and at the very least, you hope Britton can stabilize this bullpen while Wandy Peralta is on the IL, even if he isn’t in the playoff picture.
Will Wandy Peralta Be Ready For October?
Assuming the injury places him on the 15-Day IL, we’ll see Wandy Peralta potentially return on October 3rd since he has not appeared in a game since September 19th. If the injury is severe, he probably won’t be available for the American League Division Series, but it’s still too early to tell.
Peralta is a huge piece for this bullpen, as his ability to get lefties and righties out in high leverage is highly valuable for a bullpen lacking in left-handed options out of the bullpen and lacking in a set closer. It’ll be a grind for Aaron Boone to figure out the pecking order of this bullpen in the last stretch of the season, but not impossible with their strong depth and the return of Scott Effross.